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US Slaps Cuba with Sweeping Sanctions on Generals, Spies
(MENAFN) The United States unleashed a sweeping wave of sanctions Monday against Cuba's most senior government figures, military commanders, and intelligence operatives — targeting cabinet ministers, top generals, and the island's primary spy agency in one of the most aggressive escalations of pressure on Havana in recent memory.
"These sanctions advance the Trump Administration's comprehensive campaign to address the pressing national security threats posed by Cuba's communist regime and to hold accountable both the regime and those who provide it material support," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an official statement.
Among the officials personally designated were Justice Minister Rosabel Gamon Verde, Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la O Levy, Communications Minister Mayra Arevich Marin, and Juan Esteban Lazo Hernandez, president of the National Assembly.
The sanctions package also ensnared the Directorate of Intelligence of Cuba (DGI) — Havana's foremost intelligence apparatus — along with its leadership, three senior military commanders, and a high-ranking Communist Party Central Committee official. Two additional entities were designated: the Ministry of Interior (MININT), which commands Cuba's police forces, internal security apparatus, and prison network, and the National Revolutionary Police (PNR), accused of operating mobile detention facilities and violently crushing civilian protests.
Hours before the sanctions were announced, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel issued a sharp warning, asserting that his country holds the "absolute and legitimate right" to defend itself against U.S. military aggression, and cautioning that any strike on the island would trigger a "bloodbath with incalculable consequences." He insisted that Cuba "poses no threat, nor does it have any aggressive plans or intentions against any country," including the United States.
Diaz-Canel's remarks came in direct response to a report by a U.S.-based news outlet, which — citing unverified classified American intelligence assessments — alleged that Cuba had acquired more than 300 military drones and had reportedly discussed potential plans to deploy them against American targets, including the naval installation at Guantanamo Bay, U.S. military vessels operating in the region, and possibly Key West, Florida.
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